Improvement in gas apparatus for railway cars



l. B. .0LNEY. Gas vApparau's for Railway Cars'. N0. \4|,88. Patented Augustl9,1873.

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AM, PHmWUrHDGRAPH/c ca Mr (osonws macsss) from the air-chamber to the regulator or gov- `convenient location-inrthe car, This cham- UNITED S'rA'rEs JAMES B. OLNEY, or

IMPROVEMENT'IN GAS APPA PATENT rrron.

BnooKLYmNEW YORK.

RATUS FOR RAILWAY CARS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 141,886, dated August 19, 1873 application filed July 28, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, JAMES B. OLNEY, or the city of Brooklyn, countyof Kings-f and State of New York, have invented cer- 9 tain Improvements in Lighting Apparatus for Railway Cars, of which the followin gis a specl ifiction:

This invention has for its object the lighting of railway cars by the use of the vapor of some of the well-known hydrocarbons; and i the invention consists in a gas apparatus 1 suitable for lighting railroad cars, composed i of a strong vessel for holding compressed; air, an automatic valve or governor for disl charging the air under uniform pressure, and a carbureting apparatus, which latter is arl ranged in such proximity to one or more vai por-burners that'condensation of vapor is avoided, while, at the same time, the heat of the burner or `burners assists in vaporizing the' hydrocarbon, all of which will bev fully hereinafter described.

Figure 1 represents a vertical and longii tudinal section of a car and two burners, with their carbureting-chambers in elevation. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of one of the cari bureting-chambers and one of the burners in section. Fig. 3 is @transverse section of i the car through lthe pipe and valve leading i' ernor.

At A is represented the" body of the car, near the roof of which is arranged two burners, B B', for using the vapor of any of the volatile hydrocarbons-las Vof petroleum, 8vo.- l and immediately under said-burners, and connected therewith, are arranged the carbureting chambers G C', into which common air is carried from a reservoir, as at D, here shown as a box or` tankA underneath the car. Said box or tank is made suiiiciently strong to receive and hold the air under consideray ble pressure, and is intended to be charged by a force-pump at someof the stations pret vious to the lighting of the car. From said tank or reservoir D the air is conducted, by

a pipe, to a second air chamber or reservoir, shown at E, and which may be placed in any img the ber is `made of some iexible material, as leather or rubber, so'as to open and close as a bellows; or it may be a cylinder, so arranged as to slide inside of another cylinder, as in common gas-holders, the outer one be ing charged with water or some iluid to serve as a packing. From this chamber E the air is conducted, by a pipe, to the carburetingchambers G G', which are in close proximity to the burners,- and there it commingles with the vapor of the hydrocarbons, and passes directly to the burner.

It will be observed that a carburetingchamber is provided for each burner or each set of burners, if more than one be used in the same location in the car, and for the important reason that, after the air has been charged with the vapor, it will not be required to carry it any considerable distance to the burner, so that no condensation of the vapor can take place after the air is once charged. A second reason is that, where the burner is connected with the carbureting-chamber, the heat from the burner will assistin vaporcarbonaceous substances, and render the voperation effective even in the coldest Weather.

The admission of the air to the carbureteris controlled by an automatic valve at F in the pipe between the air-reservoir D and the chamber E, and said valve is connected with the movable top of the chamberE by any suitable connections, as levers and rods, so that, as the top of the chamber E sinks, the valve F will be turned to open the pipe leading from the reservoir D, and a fresh supply of air will be furnished to the chamber E, the top of whichwill rise and close the valve until a fresh supply'of air is required.

Preventing the condensation of the vapor, and using air under great pressure, so that a sufficient quantity may be carried in a small space to last during the night, makes such an apparatus peculiarly welladapted for use upon cars; and-- I therefore claim 1. A gas apparatus suitable for lighting railroad cars, composed of a strong vessel for holding compressed air, an automatic valve or governor for discharging the air unmore vapor-burners, the whole mounted upon der uniform pressure, and a carbureting apa railway car, substantially as described, for

paratus, al1 substantially as described. the purpose specified.

2. The air-receiver D and governor E, hav- JAMES B. OLNEY. ing an automatic valve between them, in Witnesses: combination with a carburetin g chamber for BOYD ELIOT,

operating in close connection with one or CEAS. H. LEONARD. 

